Developing a Solid Waste Management Strategy for Michigan State University

1. Developing a Solid Waste Management Strategy for Michigan State University Satish Joshi Shaufique Sidique Susan Selke Gaurav Dabholkar Terry Link Pete Pasturez Ruth Daoust Sustainable Campus Conference November 3-4, College Park, MD

2. Project Goals • Developing a Solid Waste Management Strategy for the MSU Campus • Minimizing Environmental Impacts (life cycle) • Minimizing Costs of Waste Management • Incorporating Sustainability Principles • Evaluation of Current Practices and Systems • Developing Recommendations

3. Campus Overview • Area: 5200 Acres • Number of Students: 44,836 (Fall 2004) • Largest residence hall system in the country with 23 undergraduate halls, one graduate hall, and three apartment villages • Faculty and Staff: 10,500 • Number of buildings: 660

4. Sources of Solid Wastes • Lecture Halls, Classrooms and Computer Labs • Administrative and Faculty Offices • Laboratories and Research Facilities • Medical and Veterinary Facilities • Residence Halls and University Apartments • Cafeterias and Other Food Service Facilities • Transportation Department • Grounds Department • MSU Farms • Power Plant • MSU Laundry • Printing Department • University Stores • Physical Plant • Construction, Demolition and Renovation activities • Special Events (Games, performances, graduation etc)

5. Project Approach • Conduct an inventory of waste streams • Assess current practices and systems • Compile relevant financial and environmental impact data • Recommendations covering • Input systems (Green purchasing, source reduction etc) • Output systems (collection, disposal, recycling, surplus, ) • Process control (EMS, Planning, targets, monitoring, evaluation feedback, incentive mechanisms, awareness and education programs, risk management)

6. MSU Waste Management • Office of Recycling and Waste Management (ORWM) • Office of Radiation, Chemical & Biological Safety (ORCBS) • University Laboratory Animal Resources (ULAR) • MSU Surplus Store • Farms, Grounds, Power-plant, transportation

8. Office of Recycling and Waste Management (ORWM) • Responsible for the pickup and compacting of refuse from the MSU campus and transporting it to the landfill • Collects the following materials for recycling from campus: bottles, aluminum cans, steel cans, steel scrap, office paper, corrugated board, glass food containers, wooden pallets, used printer cartridges and electronic wastes such as computers and accessories KEEP THE CAMPUS CLEAN

9. Waste Handled by ORWM: Wastes Landfilled

10. Waste Handled by ORWM: Recycling

11. Office of Radiation, Chemical and Biological Safety (ORCBS) • Responsible for collection and proper disposal of hazardous waste such as: • Chemical Waste • Biological Waste • Radioactive Waste • Batteries (except alkaline batteries) • Handles approximately 150 tons of hazardous waste materials from 1500 locations in MSU every year • Also handles non-hazardous wastes such as sharps and empty waste containers • Conducts internal audits to ensure that regulatory and safety requirements are met • Conducts safety inspections every three months KEEP THE CAMPUS OUT OF REGULATORY TROUBLE!

12. Waste Handled by ORCBS: Hazardous Waste

13. Waste Handled by ORCBS: Non-Hazardous Waste

14. University Laboratory Animal Resources (ULAR) • Maintains the animals required for research in the university • Also collects pathological waste which includes all human tissues and animal tissues associated with infectious disease or recombinant DNA research • Provides service for pick up and incineration of animal carcasses

15. MSU Surplus store • Sells used and surplus items from the university dormitories, offices and laboratories that have economic value • Items vary from furniture, kitchen appliances, bicycles, laboratory and scientific instruments to computer and electronic items and even automobiles REVENUE GENERATION

16. Waste Sampling Data: Classrooms, Lecture Halls, Computer Labs

17. Waste Sampling Data: Faculty and Staff Offices

18. HELP? • Prioritization • Volume • Costs • Controllability • Bang for the buck • Campus impacts • Life cycle environmental impacts

19. Input Controls • GREEN PURCHASING • Info on waste generation, packaging/product ratio, life cycle impacts, disposal costs with product specs • Contracting terms (suppliers, vendors, C&D) • Green vendors, development, rating, cost control • Incentives for green purchasing • Source reduction (Especially Haz waste: Prior involvement and cost assessment)

20. Output Control • Recycling percentage determination • Recycling targets (which materials, how much) • Systems for waste collection, sorting, reuse, remanufacture, • Economics of recycling (infrastructure, scale economies, sorting and processing, marketing, risk management) • Surplus store and marketing of recovered/obsolete materials • Beyond compliance in Haz waste management

21. Process Control • Info Systems (financial and physical info) • Planning, targets, monitoring, evaluation feedback, incentive mechanisms, • Awareness and education programs, • Risk management • EMS: ISO 14000 Certification? • Centralization v/s decentralization

22. Funding Sources?